


Sealed With A Kiss

by Latia



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Genderfluid Character, Makeup, Other, Sloppy Makeouts, Transstuck, based on art
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-03
Updated: 2014-05-03
Packaged: 2018-01-21 17:31:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1558397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Latia/pseuds/Latia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The world of cosmetics is a treacherous jungle, but it's much easier to navigate with a friend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sealed With A Kiss

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lokh](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lokh/gifts).



> inspired by this adorable little comic http://lokh.co.vu/post/84206822160/this-might-be-a-little-random-but-i-thought-you-might

The box is small, silver, and opens like a flower when Rose undoes the latch. You can't help but lean in a little, fascinated by all the curious little tools and containers. Everything has a weird air of mystery to it- even the smell is foreign to you.

"So," Rose's voice gently tugs you back to Earth. "What exactly did you have in mind?"

"Oh! Well." You click your teeth together softly. "I guess I was kind of leaning toward starting with lipstick? Since you, you know, use it basically everyday and stuff..."

"Hmm." Unconsciously or not, Rose taps the corner of her lips with her pointer finger. "Interesting that that's your first instinct."

"Huh?"

"There's a reason that we have we have products called  _primers_ and  _foundations."_

"Oh... so... should I start with those?" You scratch the back of your neck, smiling sheepishly- sheesh, Egbert, way to make it obvious how clueless you are about all this stuff.

"Not at all." Rose unhooks some hidden mechanism in the box, letting a previously unseen shelf pop out. Several tubes of lipstick clatter around softly. "You're just starting to experiment with this, after all. This is the time where you should be making all the unorthodox choices you want."

She trails off, plucking a dark bluish-green tube from its comrades. A sad little smile perches on her lips for a moment.  _I need to return this_. She doesn't say the words, but you can practically see them scrawled on her face.

"Anyways." Rose tucks the the lipstick away in her pocket. "Did you have any particular color in mind?"

"Oh, man. Let's see..." You peer at the shelf, still a little too shy to actually touch anything. "Uh, probably not anything too dark- no offense." You nod at Rose and her Definitely Too Dark lips. "But not like, 'nude-colored' or whatever? I want it to be, like, subtle, but  _there_. Something..."

"...different?"

"...yeah."

"In that case," and Rose leans forward, liquid-like, and plucks a tube from the box. "May I make a suggestion?"

For a moment, you're so distracted by the elegant twisting of the length of color that it takes you a moment to actually  _register_  the color. "Oh! Uh, oh man..."

Rose frowns. "You don't like it."

"No, no, it's really pretty! It's just, um. Red. Like...  _super_  red." You can't help gnawing your bottom lip. "I dunno, I'm not really sure it'll look all that good on me."

"All the more reason to experiment. This is the time when you find out which colors work best for your face. And after all," and she smiles, clearly aiming to encourage, "lipstick isn't permanent, John. Plus, we're the only ones here. No one's going to be popping in to offer any commentary on which shades they think look best."

_But you'll be here._

You don't say that, of course- you just sigh and shrug your shoulders. "Fiiiine. You're the expert." Plopping yourself on Rose's bed, you turn to her. "Work your magic."

Casual airs aside, you're a little nervous about this, a shade curious, and something close to excited, if only because this is all so new. It's a more complex process than you realized- you expected the art of applying lipstick to consist of a few swipes of color and maybe some glossy stuff to make it shine. But Rose starts with, of all things, a travel-sized toothbrush. "For exfoliating," she explains, long before the question even leaves your mouth. She drag the bristles against your lips gently and you suppress a squirm. "It'll help the color go on smoother... though your lips don't look too rough to begin with."

"Um, okay." Your laugh is a littler shakier than usual. Haha man why are you so nervous.

Next ,Rose pulls out something that looks like a pencil- lip liner, she calls it. "It's just what it sounds like. When you outline your lips it'll be easier to color within without any bleeding. You can use it as a contrast to the inner color as well..."

Part of you knows you should be trying to memorize this, but you can't help getting a little distracted by Rose's fingers resting on your cheek. Maybe you should have stuck to Youtube tutorials.

"Now the main attraction." Her hands are nimble as they guide the lipstick against your waiting mouth. It's a little sticky, and the pungent scent that you're learning to associate with makeup tickles your nose.

Yet somehow, you're having a surprising amount of fun.

"So, uh... how's it look?" You try to sound uncaring- after all, lipstick isn't permanent. To your chagrin, Rose just smirks and starts sifting through her box. "Oh, wow Rose, very eloquent. That'll be one for your biography for sure-"  


"John." She laughs, shaking her head. "Do you really think I'd subject you to ten minutes of having my hands paw at your face for an end result of anything less than satisfactory?"

"Uh. Maybe?"

She sniffs. "Well, I didn't. It looks fine."

"Then why didn't you say anything?"

"Because believe it or not, John, this black little heart of mine has a soft spot for the dramatic. Now hold still." She leans forward, a vial of some clear looking liquid in her hand. "I'm going to seal it."

Several swipes later, she begins to clean up. You squirm on your spot on her comforter, resisting the urge to lick your lips. "Sooo, am I going to be allowed to look at this at some point?"

"Patience. The sealer needs a few minutes to dry." Rose pauses. "Could I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"Why did you come to me for this? Lipstick isn't solely my domain, after all. Not to mention you could have just found something online. Why did you choose me?"

Oh. Wow, you absolutely weren't expecting that. "Well...."

The truth is, there's more than one answer to that question. Normally for something like this, you would have gone to Jade for help, but she had never been much of a makeup person. Lipstick-wise, you knew Roxy and Kanaya were just as experienced as Rose was, but for you, the whole Makeup Thing was tied intricately to the Gender Thing, and...

Kanaya was nice to you, Roxy was super nice to yoi, but you weren't really as close to them as you were with Rose, especially in regards to stuff like... this. Stuff you were still a little tongue-tied about. In spite of her multitudes of self-aimed jabs, Rose Lalonde was actually not half-bad at being a psychologist, and she had been more help to you than she probably realized. If anything, you were pretty sure she had had more than one gentle (firm) talk with Dave away from your ears, and god knows that had been one huge weight off your shoulders.

Your head swims with words, feelings, gratitude, and the only thing you can manage is an awkward laugh. "Well, it just seemed obvious! Your lipstick always looks so nice and stuff, so..."

One of Rose's eyebrows arch a little at that, and for a moment you're afraid you might have added another notch to the Egbertian Belt Of Saying The Wrong Thing. But, no, she turns away and smiles. Not that typical half-smirk of hers, but one that's a little lopsided, a lot genuine- and is that a blush? She looks like something from a fairy tale, all dark lips and pale skin, a rosy flush...

"Here."

And all of a sudden you're looking at a totally different face. You stare at the mirror in Rose's palm.

"Oh," you say. Unconsciously you bring your hand to your cheek. "Oh, man."

"You don't have to sound so surprised." There's a little huff in her voice. "I did say it looked fine."

It looks more than fine. The red in your lips bring out the warm tone of your skin, heightened by the sudden flush of your cheeks. You were afraid your teeth (your big, clumsy teeth) would just be highlighted by the red, and they are, sort of, but not in the way you expected. They look whiter than ever, and... and weirdly good.

 _You_ look good.

After a moment, you look up from your reflection to see Rose looking at you with an odd expression. Something... affectionate, but very, very firmly so. A wave of self-consciousness suddenly rises in your chest. "Uh." You laugh, ducking your head a little. "What's up? Does it look that bad?"

"I just realized." She drags out her words slowly, carefully. "We forgot to test the sealer."

"...oh." You blink. "Well, okay, but how are we supposeDTO-"

Your shoulders jump, and oh. Oh man. They're soft. They're  _really_  soft, warm and malleable against yours-

"Oh, dear."

And Rose pulls back from you, way faster than you would have wanted, and you open your mouth to protest and _wait is that blood???_  You bring your hand to your chin and... and that should not be that sticky.

"Oops." Rose's face flushs under the smudges of red, but her lips are very obviously holding back laughter. "I guess I should have waited a few more minutes."

" _Rooose!!!_ "

 


End file.
